Valkyrie Profile: Souls of the Fallen
by Reis Nailo
Summary: All is not well for Midgard and Asgard . . . how will one Valkyrie change the destiny of the worlds? Kingdoms fall and heroes forgotten, but the sword shall forever remain unsheathed.
1. Intro

_Valkyrie Profile: Souls of the Fallen_

**Disclaimer: **Valkyrie Profile is not my own, though I desperately wish it was.

**Prologue**

The land of the gods, the sacred Asgard and Valhalla. Here the Aesir reign and abide in a nearly timeless plane of existence. Lead by the All-Father Odin, they look down upon the world of men, Midgard, watching and speculating about the lives they lead while trapped inside their cages of flesh and blood.

It has been said that those who have fallen on the battlefields of the world who have been found worthy, join Odin and his fellow gods in Valhalla. The couriers of these worthy souls are the Battle Maidens, Valkyries, known infamously as the Goddesses who govern destiny. They are three sisters who serve Odin with their swords and bows, riding fate's winds above Midgard while gathering those worthy of redemption and glory.

The middle sister, Lenneth bore azure colored armor that reflected like frozen ether crystals. Her personae was said to match her armor, a cold and pure warrior of Asgard. Her surname among the gods was the Maiden of Day.

Hrist, the Dark Valkyrie revealed in the thrill of battle amidst blood and agony, smiting down any and all who dared defy or blaspheme the gods. Her jet black armor haunted any who she allowed to live after facing her blood stained blade.

Finally, the youngest of the three, Silmeria, the Valkyrie of Twilight, was well known as the most compassionate of the three and the deepest thinker of them all. Clad with golden armor encrusted with jade filigree, she personified the rising and setting sun upon the world of men.

These three goddesses held the fate of the end times . . . Ragnarok . . . in their hands and by their decisions, Odin would either pitifully die as prophesied by Mimir, or die gloriously destroying his enemies with him. Oddly though, despite this heavy laden task, the three goddesses were never seen together on Midgard, or Asgard. Those in the presence of a valkyrie never saw two or all of them in one place, much less glimpsed one of the other goddesses. If they ever were together, it was only passing one another in the halls to Odin's throne room.

All three reported to Odin with news of the world below and new warriors to enlist toward the final battle. Silmeria, having returned from gathering more warriors, stood before her All-Father as usual . . .

However . . . the gears of fate . . . have begun to shift . . .


	2. Chapter 1

_Valkyrie Profile: Souls of the Fallen_

**Disclaimer: **Valkyrie Profile is not my own, though I desperately wish it was.

**Chapter One: Fallen Swords**

"What is this you speak off Silmeria?"

Odin, the All-Father . . . Lord of the Aesir sat upon his throne, Freya hovering idly to his right. The throne room was massively decorated and oversized, but it seemed to enhance the presence of the lord of the gods. The golden room encrusted with gems of all kinds colored the room like a rainbow as the sun shown through.

The lighting in the throne room was nothing like the tension and mood the three divine beings occupying were. The goddess of fertility was visibly trying to contain herself from unleashing her ether strike upon the goddess before them.

Said goddess stood stalk still, head hung low, showing only the crest atop her golden helm. The brightly shining long sword she bore stood like a pillar in the pure white stone floor before her feet. Drops of wetness hit the floor next to her feet, her silent tears echoed off the quiet chamber walls. In her sword hand, her right hand was a blade crafted in the lands of the elves. The edge was chipped and worn, its luster gone from the sun, and blade, hilt, and guard, were shattered.

The pieces could be seen around the throne chambers, flecks of red dotted the walls and a pool of blood could be seen across the room. Deep navy and cobalt blue robes dressed a lifeless figure; a sword similar to the shattered one in the goddess's hand lay on the floor to his left. The weapon had exploded, unable to bear the energy created from the blade lock with the two fighters.

"L-lord Odin . . . I . . . I cannot dismiss what he has said."

"Silmeria! Do you realize what that man has put into your head! He is a crafty one indeed to have you choose him and then try this!"

Freya glared menacingly at the corpse. The man had drawn swords against Odin! Not just any two blades either, but artifacts which had been gifted to him after a critical battle at the plains of Dumar to the west. It was a frightening revelation, an Einherjar attacking the All-Father!

Odin sat passively by, taking in the spectacle of the Valkyrie before him and the fight she had finished with her own hand. Recalling the battle to mind, he saw an incredible fury in his assailant's eyes mixed with sorrow. Was it that he didn't wish to fight Silmeria but thought it necessary? What was more disquieting was that Silmeria was nearly defeated, a 7th level goddess . . . by an Einherjar who had been bestowed the rank of 12th level god?

The thought of such power reminded him of his own bloodline . . . half-elven. To overcome the darkness of the first blade he wielded with the light of the second, they had lost a great former ally and destroyed a mighty enemy. Yet Silmeria was nearly lost to him, the roots of the swordsman's beliefs had obviously been ingrained into the gentlest of the three goddesses of fate.

The sword she had slain him with was the one now standing in the floor between them, the blood had drained from the sword, its ether coating leaving the sword shining brilliantly.

"Silmeria, I will speak with you later on in the day. Leave me."

The goddess nodded slowly before she left the chambers. Freya dissipated and reappeared before the body. Giving it one look that would kill any mortal man, she bent down to retrieve the sacred artifact when Odin's voice made her freeze in place.

"Do not touch that sword Freya. Come to my side."

The goddess of fertility did so silently, not exactly knowing why. Once beside him again, Odin's gaze fell on the man. He could see clearly why the man attacked without hesitation, but his power was what puzzled him.

"Tell me soldier, who are you, truly?"

As the words left his lips, the sacred treasure, Gugnir materialized in his right hand. Freya felt shivers run up her spine as she looked back to the body. For Odin to summon the legendary treasure, made the situation at hand extremely dangerous.

"Lord Odin . . . you can't mean that this mortal is . . . still alive!"

"Truly Odin, you really are amazing!"

The body shuddered before the left hand took the sword Freya had reached for in its grip. The swordsman stood to Freya's dreaded amazement.

"For those who have the guts and fortitude, they may survive the impossible. You must have seen how she did not commit to the fight All-Father. You're losing your influence."

The father of the gods sat stoically upon his throne, still trying to figure out how powerful this opponent was. Never before had any mortal survived a battle with a god or goddess, much less one which exemplified battle in its purest, cruelest form.

"How do command such power? I would know who and what you are before sentencing you to your judgment."

"I know now that I stand little chance against you Lord Odin, but I had to try; to test your own worth before Ragnarok with my own hands. Odin, I am . . ."

" . . . A fool! He's a fool to try and take on Lord Odin! What was he thinking?"

A sorcerer with glasses and robes of Bryttain sat on the Valhallan hillsides with Silmeria. He was one of the few of her Einherjar that could talk philosophy with her and not offend the gods. She sat, legs clenched to her chest, tears of silent suffering ran down her eyes. One of her own, one of her Einherjar, she had cut him down with her own hand. Her mind played over the fight continually.

She had been walking down the long hallway to meet with Freya about her usual report on her Einherjar. Just as they had met, Odin's surprised voice accompanied by her strongest warrior's battle cry and the sounds of his sword range through the air. Her own sword, the Favour, was in her hands as they broke through the doors.

They had been prepared to see Odin being protected and the Einherjar fighting off some assassin from Surt or Hel. The sight of Odin off his throne and close to the doors, her warrior's swords biting into the two sides of the throne had shaken them to the core.

Without a second to spare, Freya had phased into the air, preparing an ether attack. Her warrior jumped into the air, headlong at the goddess. Silmeria had leapt up into the air, flanking just behind him. Her peripheral vision let her see Odin reassuming the throne. Raising her sword to strike him, she kept her grip on the sword, wanting to strike with the flat and disable him in case things were not as they seemed.

Sword blade connected with sword blade and her eyes had widened with she saw the engravings on the blade he blocked her attack with. He glanced over his shoulder before blocking an ether reinforced slap from Freya with the flat of his other sword. The two goddesses pressed their strength in the two differing blade locks. Odin looked up upon them. It seemed like an airborne waltz, but he knew that this dance could end in a crescendo of blood.

With another piercing battle cry, he shifted his weight to his left and then back to his right, through the two goddesses off balance as they tried to compensate for his first movement. Continuing onward, he brought the swords around in a spiraling circular slash that appeared like a pirouette in the air from Odin's viewpoint, one sword held behind him and the other out in front as the goddesses were thrust away.

Freya disappeared again before reappearing in front of Odin, ready for the attacker's next attempt on her lord. Silmeria landed beside her as he reverse flipped, his body arced backward before landing in a dust filled crouch. He stood, completely confident in his skills and being.

Her eyes still focused on the swords by his side.

'Gram and Farewell at once? I knew he was going to be powerful, but not this strong! By the Fates, what have I done?'

"Thane . . . why . . . I entrusted you with many responsibilities and you have never failed me . . . so why this!"

Thane closed his eyes, his brow furrowed in thought as he set himself for another charge. Freya tensed as she prepared for another assault. Silmeria had felt her heart throb painfully at such blatant treachery. His eyes only half opened, the glare she had seen him give many of her enemies was now leveled at her. She had known then and there that she would have no choice but to kill him, or die trying.

"Because it is destiny, fate is far stronger than anyone of us . . . now come, let us fight Valkyrie!"

His words drove a dagger of ice through her being, and with that, the battle had begun.

"How . . ."

Silmeria's soft, shaking voice shook her mage from his thoughts on the hillside. She buried her face into her arms, golden hair cascading down her form.

"This just . . ."

" . . . Cannot be!"

Freya had ceased hovering and stood by Odin's side, the two were in a state of shock. Her words echoed off the throne room walls. How could an Einherjar know the things he had spoken? The details of Mimir's prophesy of Ragnarok and other things were only known by the most powerful of gods.

Naturally, the Einherjar also knew of their role in battle, but not of their deaths alongside Odin. Thane stood before them, stoically observing the gravely concerned gods. Odin found it troubling to see Freya look to him with an expression he never saw in her. Fear. True, Thane's words had struck him deeply, but there was time wasn't there? This strange twist of fate could and would be averted.

"Thane, if what you say is true, then what is it we shall do about this?"

"Pardon milord? 'We' you say? There is no 'WE' in this fate Odin. YOU shall fall and it will be due to your lack of watching over the Valkyries! Be wary of your actions, for they will affect all."

Thane howled in agony as a white hot flash rammed into his chest. The force of the blow carried him back to the grand doors. Opening against the force of the impact, he skidded several feet down the hallway; several guards and Einherjar leapt out of the way. He gasped for air as the wound sizzled and held the pungent scent of burning blood. His eyes were wide though he couldn't see anything through the dilated pupils as he went into shock. Freya's voice poured venomously as she floated nearer. Her hands glowed with ether, the essence of both creation and destruction. A dark crimson streak stretched from where he had hit the floor outside the doors to his prone form.

'Sister . . . is this what we receive because of our gift? Our insight? Damn them all . . . !'

Freya hovered just above his prone form; the others stayed back, but remained, desiring to know just why such a merciless thing was done to a fellow servant of Odin.

"Silence you blasphemer! You would dare say that Odin would lose!"

All eyes turned to Thane as the words left her lips. His only response was a wince of pain as he tried to smile. He knew what she was doing, warrior he may be, but he knew manipulation when he heard it. Oh, he knew it well; and he hated being manipulated.

"Thane?"

One of the Einherjar regarded the superior swordsman with distraught eyes. By the murmuring, he could tell all the Einherjar present were from Silmeria. He hated to do this to her, but he was left with no options, they would know the truth before Freya destroyed him out of false pretense.

"Mimir prophesied the death of Odin in Ragnarok and the death of all Einherjar with him. What I say is truth then . . . stop denying the inevitable!"

Another dazzling white explosion consumed the man as others watched on in shocked silence. Two of the archers, personal friends of Thane since their arrival with Valkyrie Silmeria, drew their bows. Each trained arrows on the goddess of fertility. The aesir took up arms against the two. The other Einherjar not knowing just what was transpiring backed further away.

"You dare draw on Lady Freya!"

The captain of the guard gave a stern glare at the two fletchers. One was Kennison, the other was Lillian, a brother and sister pair who had fallen against Hel's eye minions when they had ventured too close to one of her temples of the dead. They saw Thane as a friend and mentor, teaching them and learning from them at the same time. The three were equals and knew of his strict views on living life with honor.

Seeing Freya unleash her fury upon him for reasons unknown was enough for them to draw. Thane was not one to draw on an ally with concrete reason, for him to do so against Odin by sword or word meant something was terribly wrong. They would die with him, so was their oath to him, their sword oath.

"Does he know the truth and you wish to conceal such revelations!"

Jillia spoke bitterly, glancing down on her fallen friend. Kennison moved to check on the grievously injured Thane. As he came close to the body, a single shaft of thin light pierced him through the heart, his dying gasp barely audible. Lillian cried out in agony as the siblings crumbled to the floor.

'It is said that twins are bound together, sharing the same thread of life. So those that rebel together shall fall together.'

Freya's thoughts froze as she saw the other Einherjar behind the defeated trio draw their weapons. The only mage among them glared with a dark light in his eyes. His hands glowed with a sinisterly cold light.

'Curse him . . . just how much influence has he sown through the ranks?'

Completing a quick phrase and hand gesture, he lifted his hand to the sky and snapped his fingers as shards of splintering ice rained down on two of the aesir, killing them as the frozen magic pierced them from above. The hallways soon echoed of death afterward.

Soldiers and fellow Aesir gathered the next day at the spectacle in the grand audience chambers. Encased within massive crystalline coffins were the twins and Thane. Three other Einherjar joined them in their prisons of pure cold. One was a halberd soldier from the prestigious Salerno Academy. Named Kaze by one of the warriors from Hai Lan because of his sweeping strokes, the nickname had stuck and he hadn't minded it one bit.

One other woman among the frozen was a shield and sword fighter, her graceful style had earned her the title of Blade Dancer during her time still alive in Midgard. A warrior from the fallen kingdom of Amenti, her dark skin and deep black hair were sensual. The mage among the fallen was as the Raven Mac Auther, though Auther or Raven suited him just fine. He was known for being merciless in combat, selected the wounded and unwary as his targets, often producing overkill effects that would sicken even hardened war veterans. True to his name, his scavenger kills had cleared the battlefields of drawn out conflicts of attrition.

Of all those in attendance, only two were not present as Freya began speaking. One was Lord Odin, the other . . . Silmeria.


	3. Chapter 2

**Valkyrie Profile: Souls of the Fallen**

**Disclaimer: **Valkyrie Profile isn't mine, though I desperately wish it was.

**Chapter Two: Thane's Revalations**

"Silmeria . . . I would like to hear about you met Thane. Surely a man like that wasn't someone you simply came across upon his death."

The blond valkyrie stood silently before the All Father with solemn expression. Freya was off and about on some other errand, though she could probably tell what it was based on the damages to the outer hallway to the antechamber. News of the Einherjar General's rebellion had traveled too quickly through the ranks of Aesir and fellow Einherjar alike. More than likely, Freya was sent to quell rumors.

"I first came across him during his rise to infamy on the battlefields during the year of 574 C.C. during the opening stages of the war of Camille Hill. He was fighting as a neutral warrior with Kennison and Lillian as his compatriots. You remember that time Lord Odin?"

The ruler of the Aesir nodded sagely. It was an excessively blood period of time from C.C. 573 to C.C. 601. Silmeria was the Valkyrie awakened during the time, and the vast majority of the Einherjar brought to Valhalla by her were from this period of time. He had a feeling that some of the better warriors and sages were still within her, training, but he didn't see anything wrong with it. They'd appear during Ragnarok anyway when she went into battle.

"Yes, I do recall that time. Many of your best came from that period of time on Midgard. You said that he wasn't sided with anyone?"

"Yes Lord Odin. He didn't side with the invaders of Gerabellum, nor did he side with any of the unifying countries of Paltierre, Dipan, Arkdain, and Lassen who joined Gerabellum against the threat."

"You did not see this as a future repercussion?"

He face fell at the accusation. She should have suspected at some point, but his firm honor code and morality suggested otherwise.

"I had not. His skill at reading the tides of the war and planting himself in the fray between immense numbers and coming out alive and sending ripples through both sides of the conflict outweighed it all."

Odin nodded again. In truth, Thane had caught his eye before he had caught Silmeria's. How many swordsmen also wielded magic to an equal degree as their swords? He could think of none. During one of the battles of the War of Camille Hill, he'd decimated the invading country with a cunning ambush, only to turn around and drive off the union of countries with the dreaded Meteor Storm spell. Such a thing was beyond Odin's ability to comprehend.

"I can understand and forgive such an oversight. Such skill is indeed hard to find and even harder to temper. How did he die though?"

"It was during the year of 575, just before Celes of Dipan left the war. Thane and the Warrior Princess met at night to discuss the future. Both of them seemed to know that the war was coming to a close, yet Thane seemed determined to meet with her . . ."

**Flashback to C.C. 575**

_**War of Camille Hill**_

_**Unknown Location**_

"Please Celes! Do not go to meet with the Sword Magus! I refuse to trust the man. He fights for no one other than himself."

A nineteen-year-old Warrior Princess Celes, dressing in her armor, glanced at her second in command and smiled. Reaching for her shield and sword, she dawned her helm and made a quick double check of her equipment. She was one of the Great Seventeen Commanders of the war alongside Roland, Richelle, and several others.

"Please Guilm, trust him for once! He sent his personal compatriots to us with this request to meet with me. I don't see him as a man who would risk his friends for a meeting. I admit that I'd enjoy talking with the man; he has been the only one to ever perfectly read my tactics and strategies and yet never strike against me, or our troops. You know this."

It was true, the man had read every move Celes had made, yet never attacked her units. It did seem like he'd taken a liking to striking out at the Gerabellum soldiers from time to time though. Where his worry for his liege came from wasn't in the man's honor. It stemmed from the man's remarkable proficiency with twinned blades. Not many people alive were astounding with a single blade. The man's aptitude for two at one time was a thing not seen by either side.

"Just be careful Lady Celes."

The young woman sighed in amusement.

"I will. For once, I won't have you to watch my back. Take care of the troops Guilm."

The red haired general left the tent for her summoner's specified meeting place . . .

. . . Coriander

In a small, emptied home on the outskirts of the small village, the Sword Magus Thane, named for his skill at both sword and spell was awaiting the arrival of Warrior Princess Celes. He drank a simple cup of tea, not desiring anything stronger. It calmed his nerves. Earlier in the morning, he'd sent Kennison and Lillian on their way, freeing them from their duties. They made him promise to keep in contact, but he told them he could make no guarantees.

A knock on the door prompted him to look up from his reveries.

"It's unlocked, come in Lady Celes."

"You knew that I'd come didn't you Sword Magus?"

Celes stepped through the door; her shield and sword were at rest. He stood and bowed to her out of respect for her lineage. She was a princess after all.

"Honestly, I didn't know. Choosing to come is destiny, yet choosing not to do so is also destiny, we cannot escape it."

"Please, we meet as swordsmen, not royalty."

The older sword master chuckled lightly. Both warriors shook hands and Thane offered her a drink. Accepting the gesture, the two sat down at the small table. He was much younger than she thought he'd be. Thane looked no older than his late twenties.

His swords lay propped against the table. Doing the same, she marveled at the proportioning of the swords. They were like the standard long swords, but slimmer and more elaborately crafted. The handles were thinner than normal, which made sense after seeing him on the battlefields once or twice. Each of his sword techniques were involved with flashing spins and twirls of the weapons that couldn't be done with bulky grips.

"Well, what did you call me out here for Sword Magus Thane?"

"To discuss the future Warrior Princess Celes. The future of Dipan I've seen in my meditations and dreams. A future of violence and twisted machinations."

"Dreams and meditations? You're fooling around right?"

The man stared at her with a serious, yet serene face. She realized that he'd expected her to ask that question. The tone in his eyes told her that it was no joke, and he didn't hold it against her for thinking that way. Such a reaction was mostly expected from such an admission. Part of her began to lose her thirst and the drink was placed back on the table; suddenly forgotten.

"What are these sights you've seen? How are you gifted so? Swordsmanship, magic prowess, and now the gift of foresight? Who are you Thane?"

"I am a man who would rather not have all these abilities, yet Fates humored themselves with my birth. I feel though that the Maiden of Death stalks me now."

The implication of the feeling of the Valkyries watching him didn't escape her. In the back of her mind, she too wondered if she was being watched by the Maidens of Battle. Silently Celes wondered if the others she'd known to fall had been taken for Odin's army.

"Dipan and the rest of the world are heading for dark times. It will be a long time before any semblance of peace exists on Midgard. I advise you to enjoy your time with your younger sister Phyress in the future. You never know when a Valkyrie will choose you."

"You sound like a man who is expecting to die soon. What's with the fatalism?"

"I've made an enemy of the goddess Hel. In an effort to reduce lives lost on both sides of the Camille Hill War, I've deprived her of damned souls for her underworld."

Celes shivered at the name. The goddess of the dead was known to be fickle and jealous. She was also known for her cold cruel grudges and Thane's admission wasn't pretty. It made sense, but she shuddered at the thought of having Hel's wrath against her.

"I guess . . . I wanted someone to talk with who has a remarkable future ahead of them. I think I can understand a bit better the feelings Mimir had."

Celes knew of the soothsayer spoken of in legends. Thane's sudden movement to stand prompted her to do the same. Reaching for his swords, she caught a glint in his eyes.

"Would you follow me Celes?"

Nodding cautiously, she trailed him as they left. The two sword masters drew looks from villagers and a crowd of small children stared in amazement. Heading northeast for some hours, the forest they entered opened up into a huge meadow of flowers. The wind was strong, blowing petals and leaves into the air. The effect was like seeing snow fall upward instead of to the earth.

"It's like they're being called to the heavens."

Thane smiled and bent to pluck one of the flowers from the earth. Instead of smelling the plant bloom, he crushed it in his hand and blew the crumbled flower to the winds. Celes was slightly appalled until she took a closer look at the flowers at her feet. Starting slightly at the sight, she glanced back at Thane. He drew his swords.

Hideous screams erupted from the field before them. Swarms of wrathful shrouds of black wielding wicked-barbed scythes accompanied by skeletal soldiers with spears and swords materialized from the earth. Celes had heard of the poisonous flowers of white, but to see a full meadow as far as the eye could see filled with them . . .

"What madness is this?!"

"I may be fated to die this day, but at least I will choose where and how! Celes, my final words to you and also my only petition of thee."

She nodded slightly dazed that he would choose this place to die.

"Watch for the fletchers arrow, you may take her arm, but she will claim your life. Watch my final moments . . . fighting against that which I pray never to become."

"An undead?"

"No, a puppet on a string of his master."

The Princess of Dipan would forever remember the fight between the minions of Hel and Thane. He had walked into the midst of the swarm of undead undaunted and unchallenged. In the dead center of the hordes, he stopped. Placing himself completely surrounded, his words could not be heard, but the following rush of Hel's servants trying to tear him apart was obvious.

The rain of brilliant white columns of light that engulfed the swarms as she lost sight of Thane seemed like the gods were helping him. She'd never seen such a spell before. His words floated to her on the fringes of the fighting.

"_Celestial Star_."

Repeated dark horizontal slashing gave away his position as he performed what she recognized as the Misty Phantom technique she incorporated on occasions. The sudden eruption of winds and cyclones threw opponents into the air. Looked skyward, she could see Thane diving past all the minions he'd thrown upward with free fall slashes before landing with a cross slash that sent ones on the ground skyward in pieces.

"What was that?! I've never seen him like this . . . it's like he's a force of nature. Is this really mankind's potential?"

Above him and the fighting, she rubbed her eyes. High above the fighting in air stood a single figure in blue and gold armor, a feathered helm adorned her crown. The image disappeared as quickly as she chanced seeing it.

"A Battle Maiden?!"

The shattering of blades and a curse of pain brought her attention back to the battle. A greater fiend had joined the fray and shattered Thane's precious swords. In the process the same blow cut deeply from shoulder to mid-section. His life blood spilling out, Thane grabbed a fallen demon's great sword in two handed grip and began to fell the undead with cleaving blows screaming the words, "Dawn shall rise again!"

Every time an enemy fell to the great sword, he let loose those words. Thirty times the blade rose and fell and thirty times the words echoed across the plain of white lilies. Finally overrun by the mobs of undead, Celes gripped her sword in hand. Her knuckles were turning white. More than anything she wanted to aide him, but knew the numbers and odds were too great.

The burst of arrows from the right side of the battlefield followed by the bright light took her by surprise. The bright radiance grew too bright to look into and she covered her eyes. Once the aura dimmed and faded, she looked to find the field empty. No carapaces lay strewn about the field of flowers. There was no sign of Thane either save to broken swords were she saw him finally overrun.

"Was that the Battle Maiden Valkyrie?"

A faint breeze blew by her as the sun began to set. Only then did she realize just how determined to go out Thane was. He had started fighting the damned just shortly after midday. It was summer, and the days were long and nights short. Walking down to the center of the meadow, she took his broken blades and wrapped them carefully in her travel sack. The least she felt she could do was to have the blades repaired and set in honor of his memory.

Another breeze blew by with the whispers of a single soft voice.

"Thank you Warrior Princess Celes."

Hastily glancing about, she didn't find any sight of the man, but knew he was somehow there. Perhaps a Valkyrie really had chosen him. Why he felt the need to die so soon, she didn't know. Indeed, she wouldn't know until her own death and acceptance by Silmeria.

**Present Day**

_**Valhalla**_

"So he fought with Hel's minions in a mortal body for the better part of a day before succumbing? I was not aware of that man's tenacity. I have had him rematerialized and sealed. If you wish, you may speak with him before we banish him and his cadre of rebels."

Silmeria bowed and thanked Odin before heading off to Thane's sealing chamber. To be sealed and banished was worse than death for an Einherjar. Any worthy Einherjar were reincarnated in Midgard if they fell on the battlefields of Asgard against the Vanir led by Surt. To basically become a crystallized monument to show that one is not to defy the gods was unheard of for a servant of the Aesir.

Having this chance to question him alone was extraordinary. It only showed how highly regarded he was to them. The concept of his betrayal burned her harshly and wounded her deeply. At least she'd know why he'd done such a blasphemous thing.

Walking to the doors leading to the sealing chambers, several Aesir stepped aside for her. The others in the chambers, Kennison and his twin sister Lillian, Raven, Kaze, and the Blade Dancer Ishiria gazed at her through their crystalline prisons. They were all some of her best, the fact that they all had rebelled disturbed her.

Standing before Thane's chamber doors, she felt cold and hollow. Never before had she felt this way. Swallowing her anxiousness and placing hands on the doors, Silmeria Valkyrie pushed open the portal to her Einherjar's prison.

Inside, chains of ether and orichalcum bound the man in the center of the room. His arms and hands were wrapped in the bonds, suspending him from the ceiling. In a similar fashion, chains kept his feet and legs to the ground. He was held in the air, completely still and unable to move any of his appendages.

"Silmeria? Why have you come to see me?"

His voice was hoarse and raspy. Freya's blow had done considerable damage, but not enough to destroy him. His eyes blazed with a strong spirit despite the circumstances. It made her resolve dwindle even more.

"Why have you betrayed me! Odin intends to seal and banish you on Midgard, alongside the twins and three of my other Einherjar. What have you seen with those eyes of yours Thane?!"

"The death and defeat of the Aesir and Odin during Ragnarok."

The admission caught her off guard. She knew that the battle would see her death, but had his sight given him this information?

"Surely you jest Thane."

"Don't lie to me or yourself Silmeria!"

The fury within his eyes erupted into flames.

"Gotterdammerung (Ragnarok) will be preceeded by Fimbulvetr, the winter of winters. Three such winters will follow each other with no summers in between. Conflicts and feuds will break out, even between families, and all morality will disappear. This is the beginning of the end!"

Such details, she did not know and he proceeded on heedless of her attempts to interrupt.

"The wolf Skoll will finally devour the goddess Sol, and his brother Hati will eat the god Mani, plunging the earth into darkness. The stars will vanish from the sky. The cock Fjalar will crow to the giants and the golden cock Gullinkambi will crow to the gods. A third cock will raise the dead."

The raising of the dead brought a whole new perspective to what the battle was supposed to be like. Odin had never mentioned such details. What did that mean for Hel? For Nifelhiem? Lady Sol, the sun and Lord Mani, the moon would be caught by the younger wolf siblings of Fenrir and eaten? The two were always being chased by the two, but never did they catch up.

"The earth will shudder with earthquakes, and every bond and fetter will burst, freeing the terrible wolf Fenrir. The sea will rear up because Jormungand, the Midgard Serpent, is twisting and writhing in fury as he makes his way toward the land. With every breath, Jormungand will stain the soil and the sky with his poison. The waves caused by the serpent's emerging will set free the ship Naglfar, and with the giant Hymir as their commander, the giants will sail towards the battlefield."

"From the realm of the dead a second ship will set sail, and this ship carries the inhabitants of hell, with Loki as their helmsman of all damned people! The fire giants, led by the giant Surt, will leave Muspell in the south to join against the gods. Surt, carrying a sword that blazes like the sun itself, will scorch the earth!"

Silmeria couldn't believe her ears! Loki would betray them? Jormungand would participate in the final battle? It was enough that the Midgard Serpent wasn't dared challenged by most of the gods, to have him join in?

The sinuous beast was thrown to the oceans spanning Midgard and yet he spanned the entire world with his massive size. So long was he that he rotated around the world biting his tail, thus was the reason for the currents in the oceans. She was about to ask where he'd heard these words when Thane interrupted yet again.

"That isn't all Silmeria! Meanwhile, Heimdall will sound his horn, calling the sons of Odin and the Einherjar to the battlefield. From all the corners of the world, gods, giants, dwarves, demons and elves will ride towards the huge plain of Vigrid where the last battle will be fought. Odin will engage Fenrir in battle, and Thor will attack Jormungand. Thor will victorious, but the serpent's poison will gradually kill the god of thunder. Surt will seek out unarmed Frei, who will quickly succumb to the giant."

The Maiden of Battle gawked at his outpouring of details. Poor Frei was to die unarmed by Surt himself? How cold and cruel would this battle be? Thane pressed forward still.

"The one-handed Tyr will fight the monstrous hound Garm and they will kill each other. Loki and Heimdall, hahahahaha! Those two never did get along . . . will meet for a final time, and neither will survive their encounter. The fight between Odin and Fenrir will rage for a long time, but finally Fenrir will seize Odin and swallow him. Odin's son Vidar will at once leap towards the wolf and kill him with his bare hands, ripping the wolf's jaws apart."

Silmeria was beginning to shake. Her souls not yet released to Asgard trembled at his words. Their faith in the gods waned in the face of such gruesome revelations. Even she hadn't heard of these details. Yes, it was to be the battle to end all battles, but this was sounding like a multi-faceted slaughter, not a final decisive battle. For one, she did not expect Odin to die by Fenrir of all things.

"Then Surt will fling fire in every direction. The nine worlds will burn, and friends and foes alike will perish. The earth will sink into the sea . . . "

"Silence! Stop this at once Thane!"

Silmeria's scream made the man cease in his recitation. He felt she should know the truth of Gotterdammurung . . . the truth of Ragnarok. The not yet transferred Einherjar were in an uproar about this recent news, most those of the Seventeen Commanders of the Camille Hill War were all in absolute shock and horror. To leave previous gruesome battlefields for an all-out slaughter? This was not what any of them expected in the least.

"Y-you and your sisters were to die before the battle even truly began. You were to die during the Winter of Winters. Hrist was to be eaten by Fenrir in her attempt to assist Odin, and Lenneth was to die before the Winter even began by Odin's own order! I could not stand for such arrogant deception! Odin has made it out to be a glorious battle, but it will be a massacre!"

The news of her and her sister's deaths was a blow she could not stop. The knowledge was dumbfounding and she dropped to her knees. Odin would order her own sister's death? She would die during the Winter?

"How would I die?"

The question left her lips before she could stop it. All the souls inside her being stilled in wait. The expression on the man's face was unlike anything she'd seen before. It held so much pain and sorrow that she began to fear the answer.

"You . . . you were to die by my own hand."

Eyes went wide and the Einherjar within her who'd fought with him instantly protested in unison. The general shook his head requesting silence to explain.

"It would be nighttime and I'd be blinded during an encounter with the treacherous Loki that would eventually land him in Nifelheim, were he would eventually sail out with the second ship during Ragnarok. Being so sensitive to his deceptions, one of which he uses your voice while I'm blind, I think it's him yet again when its really you. I think you can picture what happens then."

She shook her head. It still didn't explain how he'd gained such knowledge. Then it dawned on Silmeria.

"Did you see Mimir's head?! Why'd you do that? It is forbidden."

His face contorted into a sneer as he glared at her.

"Would you deny me the right to see my mother?!"

Silmeria gaped. Of all the news, this was the hammer blow.


	4. Chapter 3

**Valkyrie Profile: Souls of the Fallen**

**Disclaimer: Been there, done that.**

**Chapter 3: The Banishment**

"What do you mean your mother?! Mimir never had children!"

Thane chuckled darkly. His wounds bled as they reopened in his mirth. The chains rattled noisily. The look in his eyes was more menacing than anything that Silmeria had seen. Even her sister Hrist hadn't conjured such a malevolent glare in her darkest hours.

"That's what Odin would have you think now wouldn't he? Hahahahah! Would it humor you that I also have a younger sister? Her name is Lyseria, the seer of Arkdain."

Silmeria reeled.

'_How much has Odin kept from us? Mimir had two children, one male and one female?'_

"That would explain your uncanny foresight and your details of Ragnarok. But it still doesn't explain why you went to her head."

Thane smiled sadly. The fury left his eyes and was quickly replaced by sorrow. He hung his head as he asked her his next question.

"Have you seen her head Silmeria?"

The valkyrie shook her head negatively. She was a goddess of battle, not wisdom or politics. Even if she was, she wouldn't be able to see Mimir without Odin's permission; and even Odin was rarely permitted an audience with her. She was very fickle to visitors.

"She told me that the day we parted and I was sent to Midgard with my sister Lyseria, that she would die that day. I didn't believe her at first. But now that I speak to her preserved head, she weeps bitterly for my sister and me. My mother was killed by Odin and Surt!"

"The two of them stormed our peaceful home and beheaded her. Surt held her down while Odin committed the deed with Gugnir! Have you ever wondered why he can't fully control the sacred treasure? Because it has innocent blood upon its blades!"

Silmeria could take no more news of defaming the All Father Odin. The Battle Maiden lunged at Thane, taking his jaw in her left and drawing the Favor with her right. She held the splendid blade to his throat.

"Enough! Enough Thane . . . are you trying to make me go against everything I am? Everything I have put my life on the line for?!"

"It is not the Gods of Asgard I hold malevolence for. It is not my fellow Einherjar that I bring judgment and shame upon. It is the leadership that has become so poisoned since his ascent to the title of All Father! It is Odin alone who holds my contempt! I pity you for your tied and bound nature Silmeria. You and your sisters who aren't even allowed time together until the end . . . but as I have said, you won't get that time at the end."

The passion in his words made her stop any retort that she could think of. He felt as though he was trying to overthrow a tyrant, not a benevolent ruler as everyone believed. Thoughts of her sisters Hrist and Lenneth came to mind. It was true, they hardly ever say one another. The three of them had never spent any time together as one. It had always been just two of them, one always working in the world of Midgard. Thane's reasoning of their deaths before and during Ragnarok was a frightening revelation.

The three of them would each die separate from each other?

'Hrist wouldn't mind that, but Lenneth? I know I'd rather have one of them by me in my final moments. They are my sisters after all.'

"The look in your eyes tells me that you've begun to think for yourself. My goal here is finally complete."

Silmeria snapped from her reverie like she'd been slapped. Her bewilderment crew a humored chuckled from the Sword Magus Thane. A look of accomplishment and content radiated from his ragged face. Frowning, she stared at his eyes were dimming as the seal began to finish its recourse through his being. Wriggling around in his chains, a pendant loosed itself from his tunic. The small object entranced her.

"I feel that I can finally entrust this to you Silmeria Valkyrie. It contains knowledge I've gathered over the years before I ever became your Einherjar. It will help you in the future."

"But how will I know when to use it?"

"Just trust me . . . you will know."

The man's voice faded as the seal finished its course through his restraints, leaving him contained in a solid crystal of ether. Clasping the trinket to her chest, the Battle Maiden gasped as the pendant become one with her, no longer noticeable on her person. She didn't know what kind of sorcery he'd used, but it must have been powerful; she couldn't detect its presence, yet she knew it was there.

Despite that, she no longer could ask Thane what its purpose was, his soul sealed within his prison for eternity. They'd send him and the others off later that day, or tomorrow at the latest. She knew it would be a blow to all Einherjar morale. Inwardly, she too felt the pain of their loss from those she hadn't transferred yet. Oddly, the greatest pain came from those who'd she'd collected over the Camille Hill War and the One Year War periods in Midgard.

'I guess it makes sense considering these souls had fought with or against him at some point in their lives.'

Freya materialized in the room between them. Her gaze was not cold, but it wasn't friendly either. There was a trace of pity for the Valkyrie in her eyes, though she didn't show any other signs.

"It is time Silmeria. Did you learn anything about his motives?"

"No, I didn't. He only stated that he did not regret his decisions then and now." She lied through her teeth. Her new awareness of the truths he'd discovered about Odin and the fate of the gods made her begin to think for herself. She realized that this was what he'd been trying to do for her. Now she had gained a different sense of clarity for herself.

No longer would she blindly follow her orders like a puppet as she had been. Part of her regretted that she had been so blinded by the righteousness called godhood. From now on, she would think beyond his orders and see if what her Einherjar had said was true.

'If he is truthful, which he has always been, and then I no longer serve Odin. Mankind and my fellow gods deserve far better than this tyrrany. If only I could inform my sisters. Lenneth would understand, though Hrist would give me a harsh tongue lashing for such thoughts.'

The crystal began to glow as Freya began to chant the incantation to send the crystal to the world of Midgard. The rest of the doors outside the hallway began to glow as well, his fellow conspirators also being banished from the land of Asgard.

In her heart, an unfamiliar feeling rushed through her. The pain was unlike anything else that she had felt. The fletchers' arrow, warriors' sword, magician's spell, pikeman's spear, none of those wounds had ever felt this horrid. Her heart contracted, and she knew that this was the feeling of losing a friend, a confidant. It was pain of being left lost and confused in a world she had thought to be home, yet now clearly wasn't what she had believed.

As the crystals teleported away, the floating ether particles, with their sky blue hue, hid crystal clear tears of a deeply wounded goddess, her shield and sword cracked. Only time would tell if the two would mend stronger, or shatter.


End file.
